#harry uses the ring like a fidget spinner

[eleadore]

clerestory by @yiiiiiiiikes25 and victory lap by anonymous have got me on the theyrrrrrre married kick

[fictiveheavy-systim]

inbox check? 👉👈

Under the cut! This is just to check if Tumblr ate stuff, so it doesn't include requests via dms and stuff :]

Also just for my sake, Tom's messages are gone be excluded (because bark knows they're all there + some are repeats)

Also a few aren't requests, just messages our lovely followers have sent us so they know we got em <3 and I removed any URLS if they included what account they wanted tagged in case they wouldn't want em there.

A stim board for a system that's collectively wiccan? (Protection jar things, crystals, etc!)

:)! /gen I'd like to request a Slytherin Harry Potter stimboard, with snakes, potions, and, if possible, rings/jewelry. Also, I'd prefer if the middle icon/faceclaim isn't a white Harry. Thank you! -🐍📚

ranbob (from tftsmp) pronouns suggestions & stimboard? (don't tag as kin, this is for a fictroject)

seapeekay stimboard for a fictroject with the colour orange, red and black

lawrence oleander stimboard for a fictroject with plants, cryptid or dark stuff (also no tagging as kin)

HI can we get name + pronouns suggestions for a fallen grizzly fictroject (from slimecicle's hardest difficulty vid)?

hi!! pronouns for a basil introject please!! (also, don't tag as kin!)

could you make a beyblades stimboard please :0 no preferences on colours or anything I just like it when the little guys go spin spin bonk

Could you please do an orange related stimboard with slime and in the middle a picture of ranboo? /nf

could you make a beyblades stimboard please :0 no preferences on colours or anything I just like it when the little guys go spin spin bonk

Heyyy, can I get stimboard for Spinner(BNHA) fictive with pink, green, gamer girl aesthetics, and lipstick cutting(soap is fine too tho)? - @/lameboy-lizardgirl

Hello! Could I please have a stimboard for a factive of a fictive of Spencer Reid?(It's. Interesting lakdndnfkdi) For the stims, I really like brown things and collections if that makes sense? If you need more details please let me know!!! :-]] (@/thinklessofme)

hi!! im an introject of tweek tweak from south park and would love a me themed stim board!! please tag #don’t tag as kin and #don’t tag as irl, i am extremely attached to source :[ pls tag me in the post u make btw!! but anyways!! i would love stims of coffee (or drinks in general), paws (specifically puppy or fursuit paws), space + anything else u want to add!! i would also love a blue, black, brown and/or green colour palette but im not too fussy ^_^ tysm!! art for middle: (cred. impchaos on insta) [included image]

Your cool lemme just *gives you some of my fav gifs* [2 gifs, and 1 still image that multiple people have sat around watching to wait for the gif but it wasn't and it was hilarious, unsure if that was on purpose but this was great ty]

First of all, I hope you have a fantabulous day!!! Could I get a stimboard with leather stims, tangles (the fidget thingy), and hand stims? Thank thank thank you!!!

May I have a Ardyn Izunia(Final Fantasy XV) Stimboard with darkness/corruption/nighttime themes? With dice and resin shakers if you can? And can you tag me?

Could we perhaps get a Tony Stark stimboard? Our Tony introject loves technology, science, and clicking his pen (classmates love that one /s). We'd like this to be posted anonymously and tagged with don't reblog. Thank you and I hope you're all having a good day! /g

You're really cool! All the stuff you but in your boards is very stimmy /pos [thank you! We haven't replied to this because we want to keep it in our inbox, but rest assured it was very nice and we've seen it]

i'm a billy loomis fictive, could i get a stimboard with red/blood looking things, knives, maybe some phone stims and a slight lovecore theme as well? please tag [URL] instead of this blog, thank you!

hi!! :D (also i couldn't really tell if the rules are ok with singlets interacting so if you want me to not interact w this blog its ok!! /g) could i have a stimboard with laundry hampers lined with blankets with animals in them, st bernards, giant animals stuffies, and folded laundry? if its too much to have in 1 stimboard thats okay!! i also don't know if asking two requests in one ask is ok so its ok if you need to skip out on this one if you want!! roller rinks, neon lights, pink roller skates, mp3 players,and disco outfits!! (like pants with the big bottoms and sparkley crop tops!!) thank you so much <3333

could i request a stimboard for a benry fictive with black goop, blues / reds / teals and shiny stuff pls? tyvm

kokichi oma fictant stimboard, peas and tanks! lots of glitter and paint and scribbles, if you'd be so kind

[There's also another one for a Jeremy fictant, but they went into deep specifics about how they formed and I don't want to post that w/o permission. They also specified an image and multiple of us have attempted to go find it to do this request but it's been futile so far :( they did include their @ but dms usually freak us out]

Overall we have 44 asks in THIS inbox, 1 in the system inbox, and 1 in dms

[berrycobbler]

adhd christine canigula headcanons

i know she has is canonically but i’ve seen zero content mentioning it! so here we are (for @bmcgirlsweek​ day 3)

diagnosed with inattentive adhd at a young age and has been in behavioral therapy for years

theatre is her hyperfocus

previous hyperfocuses include: the sound of music, dinosaurs, harry potter, jazz, and the roman empire

changes what play/musical she’s hyperfocusing on every few months but has had theatre in general has her hyperfocus since freshman year

goes on tangents and forgets what she was originally talking about (”where was i? oh, right-”)

gotta bounce the leg

sometimes just,,, doesn’t hear/process someone talking (”i’m sorry jeremy. did you say something?”)

constantly has to be do something or else she gets way too bored; gets tired v easily as a result

S T I M M I N G

has millions of stim and fidget toys and is NOT afraid to use them

has a tiny fidget spinner that helps her focus in class

brooke and jeremy got her a necklace for mouth stimming! she loves it

literally so disorganized and messy, everyone’s afraid to enter her room, her binder has full side pockets and empty rings, she lost all her pencils by the second day of school so no she can’t lend you one sorry

WISHES she could be like brooke who literally cannot get anything done without hyperorganization (ft systems for everything, 2 bullet journals, 4 homework planners, a giant pencil case, and a separate binder for each subject) but don’t go to her for a pencil either, she can’t give you one or else everything will be In The Wrong Place

if anyone wanted to add on i would cry of happiness thx

[itsjesperfahey]

modern soc au

inej: 

loves to dance !!! esp ballet but she can dance to whatever tbfh, she’s that good 

likes to wear caps, esp backwards. really loves bomber jackets too. 

has a couple, small tattoos dedicated to her saints 

is that one kid who loves to do parkour (both ironically and unironically) for instance is really good at it but sometimes just yells PARKOUR and steps over a rock

usually found eating lunch with her pals on the roof of the school 

is amazing at hide and seek like holy fuck ????? hid for 2 hours once and wasn’t found, came back the next day and was like “y'all losers SUCK" 

loves to study other people’s cultures, as well as history and is great as p.e (never has gotten a bad grade in the flexibility tests) 

likes to read poem books 

has a black cat as a pet named "saint" 

pronounced meme as "mehmeh” the first time she read it 

only has snapchat and instagram. is that kid who ALWAYS posts the sunset every day, esp from weird/high places and the comments are always “HOW THE FUCK DID YOU GET UP THERE" 

cried the most during fox and the hound 

always braiding nina’s hair. Knows how to do all the super advanced onces as well

"I don’t know, CAN YOU?" 

 the best one at pushing people on the swings 

AMAZING AT JUST DANCE WITH JESPER 

"sorry I ran out of fucks to give try again later maybe?" 

gives the nicest presents. always knows what a person wants for christmas/their birthday 

the one who’s really into photography and is always taking aesthetic™ pics of Nina for her social media accounts 

Prefers tea over coffee

wylan:

bullied for not being able to read (at least up until high school), so is super shy 

loves drawing. the artistic™ one who takes anatomy to be able to draw people better 

MASTER FLUTE MUSICIAN. On the school band. Jams hard af when he plays it 

is in gem math and AP chem with kuwei. 

loves sweet. addicted to blue jolly ranchers. his tongue is always blue 

constantly pushing up his thick rimmed glasses (even if they ain’t on, which causes him to poke his eye)

looooves all the superhero shows on the CW 

V neck sweaters. always

always has his trusty satchel

only has tumblr. has like 10k followers because of his artwork. 

”‘illuminati’ ? is that a band?“ 

cat person even though he’s allergic to cat fur. absolutely adores inej’s cat. settles for owning a horned lizard named "shrek" 

secretly a huge fan of memes 

really gay for tom holland and ed sheeran (calls him "ginger Jesus”) 

gamer with jesper. they always play overwatch together, wylans better tho. a genji and Ana main 

cried the most during big hero six 

wylan, with blank eyes: “I like my coffee how I like my men” // jesper: *spits out his drink* 

matthias: 

sports fan obv. On the schools hockey team bc his fav is hockey. is extremely competitive when he plays it. Is constantly checking but never gets penalties (aka slamming the other players against the walls)

played basketball against jesper and surprisingly lost. jesper won’t let it go 

dog person. owns a pet pomsky (Pomeranian-husky) with nina who’s name is “bub" 

“long hair don’t care”draws inspiration from Harry styles 

really philosophical. takes all the philosophy/ethics classes available 

kind of sounds like Thor (thick and deep accent) 

a good™

"you’re all horrible trash”

“do we really have to be doing this now? I have to finish my homework" 

loves baking. bakes everything for the love of his life 

grey sweatshirts and adidas shoes 

wears contacts Because he hates how glasses look on him. only wears them when he’s home 

oblivious to all the women in love with him

"CAN YOU EVEN LIFT BRO? BECAUSE I SURE AS FRICK CAN” (doesn’t curse) 

real 👍🏻🤘🏻👌🏻life🤰🏻👼🏻🌱student📚✂️✏️athelete🏃🏼🥇🏆🥅🏒

has Facebook and Twitter only

cried the most during bambi and dumbo 

little spoon™ 

has a couple tattoos with very deep meanings

jesper: 

dancer with inej. dances like those ppl who look like robots ??? the ones who look like they freeze parts of their body while the others move. AMAZING at it 

loves jazz but also dubstep/edm and rap/r&b. Beyoncé is MOM/QUEEN. 

sometimes djs parties 

again, huge gamer with wylan. he’s a lucio and junkrat main for overwatch. loves like every video game ever 

loves all the marvel movies, in love with black panther (was team cap) 

dresses like a hipster but also sometimes a fuck boy (tank tops and shorts with a backwards cap style) 

favorite subject is business and debate. great negotiator 

cried the most during the lion king 

A+ cosplayer (especially his lucio cosplay) 

big supporter of human rights (LGBTA+, feminist, black lives matter, poc representation). Will LITERALLY get into fights over anyone who thinks otherwise. Fist fights, always supported by Kaz and Matthias. Got suspended for 3 days for breaking a kids nose who thought LGBTA+ people should **** ** ****) 

that one kid who has 50 fidget spinners and can do cool tricks with them. also manages to sell all of them 

skateboard pro™ 

always sends the blinking face meme, even if it’s out of context 

all the social medias. 

one tattoo only of a gun with a 'bang’ flag coming out of it 

nina: 

 PROFESSIONAL👏🏻 MAKE 👏🏻 UP 👏🏻 ARTISTS 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 HAS HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF FOLLOWERS ON HER INSTAGRAM AND THE SAME FOR HER YOUTUBE CHANNEL 

Speaking of YouTube, she always does cute videos. Baking/cooking tutorial videos featuring Matthias, 'i do my boyfriends makeup’, 'my boyfriend does my makeup’, 'my boyfriend buys my makeup’, does make up tutorials obviously, challenges with her best friend inej like the 'whisper challenge’. everyone loves her and says her and Matthias are their otp 

loves fashion design, takes that class. 

loves horror movies/creepy things but also Disney 

great at roller skating 

always wins the best dressed awards ad school 

also huge fan of ed sheeran. loves little mix more than 5h. 

cried the most during 'up' 

Can speak like 4 languages (English, french, Latin and spanish) 

loves traveling and learning about new cultures too 

dancer!inej’s biggest fan and hockey!matthias’ biggest fan 

always breaks snapchat streaks 

likes to (friendly) debate with jesper, especially over stupid things 

amazing with kids. babysits all the time. calls “bub” (the dog) her and matthias’ baby 

big spoon™ 

notes are so fucking pretty. buys the most expensive stationary and notebooks 

also huge supporter of human rights. runs the feminist club. (Jesper is the Vice President) stresses loving yourself and your body, and makes sure to design comfortable yet GORGEOUS clothes for “"plus sized people”“ 

wins 'dynamic duo’ award with inej 

always eating lollipops 

has a few very small tatos of cute things like roses and crowns. has one quote written in cursive on her rib

kaz: 

prefers black coffee as well 

loves crime shows, whether they’re real or fake. for instance loves both 'Dateline’ and 'Criminal Minds’ also loves 'House’

 favorite class is psychology, learning how a person thinks and acts and feels

has the dregs tattoo on his arm * edge lord 9000™ * such a drama queen and diva like damn 

*deep sigh* "I think I’d rather go take a nap” *gets up and leaves* 

also loves computer science. knows how to hack shit like a pro 

always rough housing with jesper. broke a table once 

does walk with a cane. likes to slap matthias’ ass with it 

“bow down you fucking peasants" 

only types in lower case with 0 emojis and no punctuation marks. CONSTANTLY leaves people on read 

only has Twitter and snapchat. His posts on snapchat never have captions, yet somehow has a 200 day streak with Jesper and a 250 day streak with inej 

loves watching horror movies with nina 

 *in a fight* "oh I’ll sHOW YOU SOME DIRTY HANDS” *swings* 

gets second place for best dressed award 

always sending memes with no context in their group chat, as well as vines 

indie and alternative rock fan 

“does it look like I care because I’m sorry if it does I didn’t mean to give you that impression" 

head over heels for inej Ghafa like wow 

likes to read a lot of mystery books and non fiction books 

cried the most during finding dory 

can solve a Rubik’s cube under a minute and won’t let you forget it 

The one asshole who picks either Kirby or metaknight in super smash brothers brawl

 hates seeing the notification bubble so he always has all chats muted and notifications turned off for apps 

kiss ass to all the teachers to get them A’s

Kuwei: 

SCIENCE NERD. ALWAYS singing the bill nye theme song. Loves ASAPScience on YouTube. Master at chemistry and biology 

"hey did u know bill nye is, like, my dad" 

nina treats him like a baby 

loves everything to do with Star Wars while wylan loves star trek more. Fighting ensues. 

has a pet Siamese cat name sparky 

Used to have a huge crush on jesper and everyone knew it except jesper. 

knows the intro to the bee movie ("according to all known laws of aviation-”)

 jesper in the group chat: “gonna go shower be right back” // kuwei: “without me ;)?” // wylan: “KUWEI SWEAR TO FUCK” // kaz: “watch your fucking language wylan" 

obsessed with Pokémon go even if it died out (chose team instinct) 

"fight me on this" 

has Twitter, snapchat and instagram 

Always drinking ginger ale 

master at bop it 

the one kid who always forgets to pay you back for stuff 

is also into the CW super hero shows, so him and wylan are constantly talking about it 

loves cartoons and anime 

speaks fluent fuckboy 

God awful at comebacks 

"let’s take a selfie guys !!!” // “kuwei no-” // *snapshot sound* 

talks !!! Like !! This !!!! for,,, some reason ???????? 

huge nerd for other things too like lord of the rings and Harry Potter and game of thrones 

cried the most during inside out

 "do you think planes are scared of heights?“ // "for fucks same kuwei it’s 4am”

[randomfandomimagine]

Random Prompto Argentum Headcanons

If you want me to write random headcanoms like this for a particular character of any of my fandoms, just ask! :D 

Is the biggest nerd ever

Loves Star Wars, Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter

Especially Star Wars

Knows the movies by heart

And I mean he can fucking recite the dialogue

Big Pokémon fan

This boy does the sickest cartwheels and flips

Secretly adores romantic movies

Disney movies are his weakness, though

They are just so emotional and beautiful!

He especially enjoys Peter Pan, Tangled

Kinda likes Pixar too

Toy Story, Up and Finding Nemo especially

But mostly he prefers Disney

He only gets actually angry once every century

But let me tell you, when it does happen, it’s serious

It probably happened because his loved ones were being threatened

Sunshine boy wouldn’t even look like himself

Would definitely have a Tumblr blog

And spends hours and hours scrolling down the dashboard

Also showing his friends stuff he finds funny or interesting

He loves strawberries, he just adores the flavor

And it’s a plus that they’re healthy!

Adores animals

Birds are his fave (Chocobos, duh!)

But puppies are a close second

Always fidgeting around

Has like 5 fidget spinners and always keeps one in his pocket

Can’t. Sit. Still.

He’s always swinging his legs

Or tapping

Don’t ever let him sit in a spinning chair

Because he will sway back and forth in it

And definitely spin for a long time

And obviously fall when he stands up because he got so dizzy

Whistles a lot

He’s clumsy af

Butterfingers

Will sometimes trip over his own two feet

Especially when he’s nervous 

Surprisingly good at keeping secrets

Loves being the little spoon

Is sooo into super hero movies

Spidey is his favorite, though (and Robbie Daymond aka Prompto’s voice is voicing Spiderman, how awesome is that?!)

Hardly ever swears

Gestures a lot

He’s right-handed, but uses his left hand for everything

Mainly a habit to hide his right hand

He’s just terrified that someone might see that on his wrist

Prompto has the most contagious laughter ever

Gets really loud sometimes without realizing

Which is why he oftens loses his voice

Has the most effective puppy eyes in the history of puppy eyes

He puts that adorable face and gets what he wants

This boy can actually sing! (got proof! kinda...)

In fact, he knows how to play guitar but hasn’t done so in forever

Doesn’t like reading

He tried, but got bored and lost focus

Pretty sure he has ADD or ADHD

Sings to himself a lot

Has really good memory

Especially for birthdays 

Or to remember his friends’ likes

He’s super nimble and agile

Can run super fast

Actually a morning person

Still goes on morning runs every day

Gets pretty giggly sometimes

Would immediately lose a try not to laugh challenge

He’s really creative

And curious

Really likes museums, he’s fascinated by them

Most gullible person in the world

He looks pretty innocent and he is

But he can have some dark and dirty thoughts sometimes

Often writes stuff down on his hand

Because he can be so forgetful!

Prompto is precious and needs to be protected

[mj-spooks]

on one hand, i understand the aesthetic of using a magic wand, but on the other hand, i cant imagine any place out of europe using a wand for magic. what else makes a good substitute for a modern and traditional witch?

So I’m a longterm member and mod of a Harry Potter roleplay on another site, and previous mods had tried to expand the RP to include other countries and regions. Their attempts did not work, mostly because of poor management and everyone being too comfortable with the established universe to want to worry about the others. For a while I ended up with official ownership of their attempt at a South American magical school. One of them asked, since I was from Texas and somewhat familiar with SA culture due to having a lot of friends from various SA countries, if I would be interested in attempting a reboot of said RP.

I said not no, but hell no. The amount of work it would require! I’m not getting paid for this! And a couple of them legitimately didn’t understand what the big deal was.

Me: Okay well first off, what do they use instead of wands-Them: Why don’t they just use wands?Me: And what kind of spells do they use-Them: The same spells used at Hogwarts?Me: And how is the magical culture different-Them: Why does it have to be????

Cue me just saying ‘Not gonna happen’ and shutting down the conversation there, while my friends and I rolled our eyes at how completely Eurocentric they were. They were all like “Just be lazy!” and I was like “NO THIS REQUIRES RESEARCH AND I DO NOT HAVE THE TIME AND ENERGY TO DO THE RESEARCH FOR SOMETHING THAT PROBABLY WON’T PAY OFF AT ALL”

Anyway that was all just a really long rant about something I love ranting about and also a way of saying I TOTALLY GET WHERE YOU’RE COMING FROM THE MAGIC WAND THING IS EUROCENTRIC BULLSHIT AND THE FACT THAT IT’S SO PREVALENT AND TREATED AS A GIVEN IS RIDICULOUS.

For traditional, non-eurocentric witches (or even still eurocentric ones that just... don’t like wands), you could try things like staves, bones, mirrors, rings or bracelets, there are honestly a lot of options. Really the only requirement for a wand alternative is that it be made of natural materials and preferably handheld since that’s presumably how you’d channel your magic (though, that bit’s not a requirement, I can see some witches channeling through their feet Earthbender style, that’d be pretty damn sweet).

Modern witches, honestly, use whatever’s handy. Everything came from the Earth at some point (yes, even plastic) so if you need a specific tool to focus through, pick something that’s comfortable and meaningful to you.

I suddenly desperately want someone to channel magic through stim toys. IT MAKES SENSE HEAR ME OUT wands and other such tools are specifically to be used as a way to channel your magic into a specific object to help you focus it. What are stim toys for? FOCUS. You don’t have to point the object at whatever you’re intending to Do Magic On, you just have to have something to center and ground yourself, yeah? No reason that it can’t be a fidget spinner or a stress ball or whatever the fuck else you need!

I’m fucking brilliant.

On that note, honestly anything you do to focus or center yourself functions as a tool for magic. You can doodle while casting a spell if it helps you focus. Witchcraft is personal and anyone who tells you that you have to do it a specific way or with specific tools is a gatekeepy jerk.

[honoraryskywalker]

11 Questions Meme

Rules:

1. always post the rules. 2. answer the questions given by the person who tagged you. 3. write 11 questions of your own and tag 11 (or however many) people to answer them.

I was tagged for this meme by both @froomage and @katherinevar, which is great because 1) our Strike-related conversations are one of my favourite things about my Tumblr experience, and it’s nice to talk about something else for once and get to know each other a bit more; 2) their questions were sooooo fun. 

Here are my answers to @froomage‘s questions:

1. What fictional place would you most like to go?

Definitely Middle-Earth. I’d love to tour all of it, but if I had to choose a place to stay for a while, I’d say post-War of the Ring Rohan. They’ve got Faramir and Eowyn. And horses (I’ve only ever ridden a horse twice, and learning how to do it properly is one of my as yet unrealized childhood dreams). 

2. Tell me about your pets! Or pets that you would like to have. Or, if you do not like pets, what the hell?

We have a female cat that’s jokingly referred to as “the cat from Hell” by most of our friends and family. I guess this tells you something about her character. But we love her. And she loves us (in her own way, which includes biting our toes and generally making a mess of our flat in every way she can). 

3. Who is your biggest role model?

My parents, both as individuals and as a couple. Day by day, they have built a family I consider a privilege and a blessing to have been raised in, and with their example they have shaped such a huge part of the woman and wife I am - and I strive to be. 

Sorry if this sounds sappy, but I could literally go on for hours writing how grateful I am for them. 

4. If you were dictator of a small island nation, what crazy dictator stuff would you do?

I’d order the writing of a glorious national epic to rival with Dante and Homer.

(*evil cackle*)

Honestly, I don’t think I’d be that good of a dictator. I like books, tea, hugs and kittens, you see. 

5. What is something that a ton of people are obsessed with but you just don’t get the point of?

Reality TV, and the disco.  (yep, I hated it even when I was 15). 

6. What fad or trend do you hope comes back?

I’ve never been one to really care about or follow trends, so I wouldn't know... For the moment, I only hope fidget spinners disappear as suddenly as they appeared. /middleschoolteacherproblems. 

7. What was the best compliment you ever received?

This is a very difficult question for me, because  “Words of affirmation” is my main love language, so a kind word can really make my day, even if it’s something very simple. Even something like  “you’re a good person” makes my day, if it’s told by someone I know is sincere. 

8. What would Amortentia smell like to you? (The love potion from Harry Potter that smells like the three things you’re most attracted to.)

Freshly-cut grass, black tea, lime blossoms. 

9. Speaking of Harry Potter, which house do you belong in? Why?

According to the last Hogwarts House test I took (it was a meme here on Tumblr), I’m half Ravenclaw-half Gryffindor. I think I recognize myself in this description. People would describe me as an “intellectual” person, and I’m definitely bookish and curious about the world even beyond my everyday life. But I'm also fiercely passionate about my principles and my opinions, and when there’s something I really care about I’m extremely determined (sometimes even to the point of stubborness). 

10. If you could travel backwards in time, where/when would you go?

There’s so many places I’d love to see (or historical people I’d love to meet). I’d love to visit early modern London and watch Shakespeare’s plays as they were originally performed. Be friends with the Inklings at Oxford. Drink a glass of wine with G.K. Chesterton in his house. Roam the streets of medieval Europe and see the great cathedrals when they had just been built. 

11. What keeps you up at night?

I’ve recently become a fall-asleep-as-soon-as-head-touches-pillow kind of person, unless there’s something that really troubles me. Sometimes I stay awake in bed a little longer to go on reading a good book or look up a couple interesting articles on the Internet or pray a while, if it’s been a particularly busy day and I haven’t had much time. 

12. What’s one thing you wish you could change about yourself?

Two things, actually: my hair and my tendency to be a little bit anxious. 

13. Favourite book of all time?

The Lord of the Rings. 

And here are my answers to @katherinevar’s questions:

1. If you had to live in a house in the woods without internet and phone for a month which five books would you choose to take with you?

The Lord of the Rings - The Bible - Flannery O’ Connor’s short stories - Philip K. Dick’s short stories - The Odyssey 

(and so many more I can’t mention because you said only 5. Yes, I know those short story collections are technically more than one book, but well...) :D

2. Between your favourite actor/actress, singer and author which would you choose to meet and why?

He isn’t an actor... But if we’re talking about living people only, I’d say Christopher Nolan (he’s one of my favourite directors and he sounds like an interesting person to talk to, with many interests and a clever mind).  Or George Lucas. (Star Wars was my first love). 

But I’d love to have a loooooong chat with J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis and G.K. Chesterton. Or Shakespeare. Oh, Shakespeare. (*heart*).  As for Italian writers: Giovannino Guareschi and Eugenio Corti. 

I feel like I owe much to these people, for the way they have made me laugh and cry, given me food for thought, shaped my worldview and enriched my life with their stories and their characters. 

3. Which song could listen for 24 hours without getting bored?

Right now I’m binge-listening to Bruce Springsteen’s American Land (the live version from the 2006 Dublin concert). But it changes very often.  

4. Your favourite movie?

Star Wars (I-VI). Yes, I’m one of the few people who loved the Prequels but didn’t like The Force Awakens. 

Also, Gran Torino by Clint Eastwood. 

Again, there are many more which I had to leave out...

5. Is there a book you would change the ending and which one is it?

Ask me again after Lethal White has been published and we find out if Robin married Matthew in Career of Evil or not. 

6. Who is your favourite author that you buy his books with eyes closed?

Most of my favourite writers are from the past, so I’m not really “following” any author right now (with the exception of our friend Robert Galbraith). But I still have a lot of books by G.K. Chesterton / Philip K. Dick to buy, so...

7. If you had to leave your country where would you like to go?

Somewhere in the UK, or Dublin. 

8. Which is your favourite book character?

You can’t make me choose between Samwise Gamgee and Faramir. :)

9. Your favourite tv-show?

Generally speaking, I tend to prefer miniseries. I loved BBC’s Pride and Prejudice and Stranger Things. As for the longer series, I haven’t watched many, but I usually prefer the ones which are more comedy than drama. I was a huge fan of Monk and Psych. 

10. Have you ever bought a book that was mentioned in another book you were reading?

Only when I was studying at university (I bought books which were mentioned in the bibliography of other books). 

11. Which is the quality that most people apreeceate about you?

People often tell me I’m wise, a good listener and a good giver of advice.

I tag @katherinevar, @froomage, @many-books-little-time, @somebluenovember and anyone else who’d like to answer. :)

My questions:

1. What does it take for you to fall in love with a story? (a good plot, deep characters, etc.)

2. If you had to describe yourself with 3 adjectives, what would they be?

3. Is there an author/book/show/film you really love, even if it embraces a worldview that’s completely different from yours? 

4. What is a book you really wanted to like, but didn’t? (or a book you didn’t think you’d like, but ended up loving)?

5. Write a quote that really resonated with you and explain why. 

6. Did you ever “meet” a fictional character who was just like you in their appearance/character/behaviour? 

7. What is your favourite food?

8. Is there a trait which makes you hate a character instantly, no matter what they do?

9. What is your favourite childhood memory?

10. If you could only read one book to your children, what book would you choose?

11. What is your favourite fairy tale (I’m talking about “classical” fairy tales) and why?

[news-mashable-yahoopartner-blog]

Meghan Markle is the princess of British Google search trends in 2017

2017 was the year the UK really wanted to find out who this Meghan Markle person was.

The Suits actress is the top person that the UK searched for this year, and her name is the top trending term. Funnily enough, her new fiancé, Prince Harry, didn't even crack any of the top 10 lists.

SEE ALSO: Watch 11-year-old Meghan Markle protesting a sexist ad on TV

And no prizes for guessing what event caused that sudden spike in search interest? We'll give you a clue. It was on 27 Nov 2017 and involved a diamond ring. 

Image: google trends

Here are the other topics the UK was searching for in 2017. 

Top Trending 1) Meghan Markle 2) iPhone 8 3) Hurricane Irma 4) Fidget spinner 5) Manchester bombing 6) Grenfell Tower 7) 13 Reasons Why 8) Tara Palmer Tomkinson 9) Shannon Matthews 10) iPhone X

It might also be surprising that there was so much more search interest in iPhone 8 than iPhone X. But we spent most of the year assuming that there would just be an "iPhone 8", and the name "iPhone X" wasn't unveiled until later, so maybe this is why the iPhone 8 is the stronger search term.

Hurricane Irma, fidget spinners, and controversial Netflix series 13 Reasons Why were also in the top searches globally. 

Tara Palmer Tomkinson, a socialite who died in February, and Shannon Matthew, the victim in a fake kidnap plot which was the subject of BBC drama The Moorside, complete the list of search trends.

Those names also appear in the top searches for people.

1) Meghan Markle 2) Tara Palmer Tomkinson 3) Shannon Matthews 4) Charlie Gard 5) Jack Maynard 6) Donald Trump 7) Chester Bennington 8) Bruce Forsyth 9) Harvey Weinstein 10) Jodie Whittaker

The top "how to..." searches are interesting too.

1) How to make slime? 2) How to buy Bitcoin? 3) How to stay young? 4) How to watch Mayweather vs McGregor? 5) How to watch Joshua vs Klitschko? 6) How to mine Bitcoins? 7) How to make Yorkshire pudding? 8) How to make a fidget spinner? 9) How to vote in the general election? 10) How to lose belly fat fast?

The first two entries in the 'how to' list above — slime and Bitcoin — are topics that have captured the internet's imagination globally in 2017. YouTubers flooded us with tutorials on how to make the colourful, gloopy slime, and your entire extended family is now talking about Bitcoin as its value surges — even if they don't understand it. Mashable can help you out with some of these questions! Here's how to make slime and how to buy Bitcoin.

Politics only just barely made the "how to" list, with June's General Election coming in at the number 9 spot. But the "What Is...?" searches show that the UK still needs help understanding our civics.

Here's what topped the 'What Is…?' list 

1) What is a hung parliament? 2) What is an exit poll? 3) What is the Confederations Cup? 4) What is Bitcoin? 5) What is the Antikythera mechanism? 6) What is a pangolin? 7) What is a general election? 8) What is waterboarding? 9) What is the DUP? 10) What is Pink's real name?

The UK General Election results is the likely reason behind the first two questions on the list above. Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservatives ended up doing a deal with Northern Ireland's DUP after no party earned a decisive majority. And as for question 5 — the Antikythera mechanism is known as the world's oldest computer. (Don't worry, I had to Google it, too.) 

Check out the other top topics that grabbed Brits' interest in 2017

News Events 1) Hurricane Irma 2) Manchester bombing 3) Grenfell Tower 4) North Korea 5) London Bridge attack 6) General election 7) Harvey Weinstein 8) Catalan independence 9) Las Vegas shooting 10) Kevin Spacey

Sporting Events 1) Wimbledon 2) Grand National 3) World Cup 2018 draw 4) Mayweather vs. McGregor 5) ICC Champions Trophy 6) Tour De France 7) Confederations Cup 8) Joshua vs. Klitschko 9) FA Cup Final 10) Champions League Final

Recipes 1) Chilli con carne 2) Spaghetti bolognese 3) Beef bourguignon 4) Beef stroganoff 5) Hot cross buns 6) Dauphinoise potatoes 7) Omelette 8) Millionaire shortbread 9) Bechamel sauce 10) Chicken thighs

TV Shows 1) 13 Reasons Why 2) I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here! 3) Celebrity Big Brother 4) Game of Thrones 5) Peaky Blinders 6) Three Girls 7) Strictly Come Dancing 8) Taboo 9) Little Boy Blue 10) Love Island

UK Number 1 Singles 1) Ed Sheeran - Shape of You 2) Harry Styles - Sign of the Times 3) Dua Lipa - New Rules 4) Post Malone - rockstar ft. 21 Savage 5) Taylor Swift - Look What You Made Me Do 6) Clean Bandit - Symphony feat. Zara Larsson 7) Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee - Despacito ft. Justin Bieber 8) Calvin Harris - Feels ft. Pharrell Williams, Katy Perry, Big Sean 9) Sam Smith - Too Good At Goodbyes 10) Camila Cabello - Havana ft. Young Thug

Best of luck in all your 2018 Googling!

WATCH: Prince Harry and 'Suits' actress Meghan Markle are officially engaged

[flatworldnews-blog]

Teenage chimp threatens to run away from zoo, citing no one understands him

CHICAGO, IL – Teenage years can be a taxing period of time no matter what species you are.  With skin so oily, rich Texans want to drill into your face, it’s generally an awkward time. One commonality that is true for humans as well as chimps is the need for independence. Local chimp, Two-Two, has had about enough of the zoo life.

“Well, first off, my f***ing name is Two-Two,” we translated from Two-Two. “I get it. It’s cute and hilarious to name a chimp that for being born in 2002, the year sequels to Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Men in Black came out. That’s not terrible, but I saw pictures and the zookeepers used to dress me in a tutu! And look at this!” Two-Two then made it abundantly clear that he is in fact a male chimp.

“No one understands me, ya know?” Two-Two continued as he blew bangs of hair out of his line of vision. “I’m just so sick of being here in this zoo like some sort of caged animal! Wait, don’t put that in. That sounded dumb. It’s just my parents don’t get it. They grew up in the ‘80s when people didn’t take as many pictures of them at the zoo. They just had creeps with mustaches and fanny packs. Nowadays, everyone is taking pictures on their phones of me when I look horrible, or when I actually look pretty solid, they pay more attention to their fidget spinners. One of these days, I’m just gonna run away and King Kong the shit out of the John Hancock Building. Try and stop me.”

“Despite what Two-Two thinks, we do understand him,” says zoologist, Debra Penny. “I mean for f**k’s sake, I just translated everything he just told you. Two-Two has been showing more and more signs of acting out. His mother just gave birth to a new Chimp, named Seventeen (we’re not very creative), and he feels like she gets more attention. He has also been slinging more fecal matter than the average chimp, and an alarming amount of it is landing in the ice cream cart, which has become an issue in taste for a couple people. Most weirdly like it.”

“What the f**k is she saying? I can’t understand your stupid language!” Two-Two exclaimed moodily.

“Anyway, we are trying to create a safe environment for Two-Two, you know, keeping him away from koala bears who want to eat eucalyptus leaves with him, keeping him away from baboons who tend to like to engage in feces fights, and definitely keeping him away from human teenagers, because they are wild, nasty, mean, and generally smell horrible. Isn’t that right, Two…Where did he go?”

Just then, we saw Two-Two who had caught the eye of a female chimp named Sidewalk (not a creative naming team), and once again, Two-Two made it clear that he was a male chimp. Teenagers, am I right??

[josysadventures]

A musical goodbye

Yesterday was the last day of school, the last day with my students, my last day as a teacher. I was really emotional Tuesday and Wednesday because those were the actual last days of teaching and we all sat in a circle and talked about how each kid had grown and changed this year and they acknowledged each other and it was beautiful and touching and it made me so sad that I would not get to be here to watch them evolve further. But yesterday was field day, yesterday was a happy day and it made it feel even more unreal. It felt like the last day before vacation but not like the last day before goodbye. In the morning we finished packing up the classroom (since construction and remodelling are starting today) and while we were tidying things up, I played Michael Jackson songs and we all sang together. 

I’m gonna make a change. For once in my life. It’s going be real good. Gonna make a difference. Gonna make it right....

It brought a very vivid flashback to me. A year ago, I was in the South of France, in the public library, filling in my application for this internship, while listening to Whatever Happens 

Whatever, whatever, whatever Whatever happens.. don’t let go of my hand

And now I’m here, I did make a change but ten months later it is time to let go.

Yesterday morning was also graduation for the 5th graders so we lined up and hid in a hallway waiting for them to show up and when they did we sang the school anthem :

C’est l’école Normandale C’est l’école Normandale C’est l’école Normandale Ici, on parle français Ici, on parle français Ici, toujours français.

One of my students turned around once the last of the 5th graders had left and said : You won’t be here to see us graduate next year. And my heart dropped. No, I won’t.

At eleven thirty, volunteer parents arrived and we all went outside to have a picnic together. Then the kids got facepainted and many of them ran to me to show me that they had asked to get “I <3 Ms S.” on their foreheads.

Afterwards, it was time to go on the sports field. We were lucky, it was the sunniest, hottest day since I’ve been here. So we ran, jumped through hoops, bounced on balls and the kids used the water they were supposed to drink to do a waterfight (guess who was the willing target ?).

But of course, the end of the day came. I didn’t cry because I just couldn’t (and still can’t) fathom that it really was goodbye, that I am never seeing any of them again. However I came very close a few times and manage to stop myself (if I had cried, they would all have fallen apart and I didn’t wanted to make them feel even more sad). 

The first was when Sam left early during one of the games on the field. His mum was there, she thanked, said how much I meant to him and I told her that she had raised a really really good kid and hugged him, told him how much I was going to miss him. He said “Goodbye Sourny” and I watched him walked away.

The second was when Sterling gave me one of those things he would always play with (this year all the kids had putty, slime, fidget cubes and fidget spinners) : a puzzle made of three metal rings. And he said “Here, you have it, so you can remember all the times we got into trouble for playing with fidgets”.

The third was when Harry left. The day before he had asked to say something for everybody during the morning meeting and what he said, looking straight at me was “Sometimes you don’t want to get too attached to people because you know that when they leave it will hurt”. And yesterday when he left, he hugged me, and then with his head down, walked away and would not look at me because he didn’t want me to see him cry. That just broke my heart.

The fourth time was Reagan, my little Miss Sassy-pants. She cried, held on to me and when she got on her bus, I held her hand through the window and walked until the bus started going too fats and I had to let go.

And the last time was after I got on my bus, sat at the very back and waved everyone goodbye. I sat with one of my favorite students, Kaylee, my Slytherin twin, Poison girl junior. We talked like it was any other day but when I got off, I told her I loved her and I stood in front of my garage until the bus disappeared when turning the corner and she disappeared with it. My last student. Then, I felt alone and for a moment it started to sink in. 

Thankfully I had plans for the night and I had no time to think about anything except getting ready and getting there. All the French interns and the most of the teachers from school met at a bar and we had a really nice time.

But trying to go to sleep last night I realized for the first time how often I think of my kids. Of things I need to tell them, of questions they may ask and what I would say. It had never dawned on me how present in my mind they are until each time one of them came up I had to stop the thought and remember that there won’t be a next day, that I won’t see them again. God, I will miss them so much. I used to be this girl who said she hated children.. crazy right ? They were the best part of my year in America and it kills me to leave them.

As I said to Kaylee on the bus, I don’t really feel it to the full extent yet because I’m still here but being back home will be hard. Cause home won’t exactly feel like home anymore, or at least, not for a while. This school, this classroom, this desk by the window, with my dirty red and white starbucks cup and the thousand origami roses Summer made for me, that’s home, that’s my place in the world.

Ever since the beginning of this last week, one line from a song has been stuck in my head : Say goodbye, to the world you thought you lived in... Say goodbye...